NNPC Extends Crude Oil Swap To April

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has again shifted the timeline for the planned commencement of its new crude oil trading and products sourcing arrangement, the Direct-

Sale-Direct-Purchase (DSDP), to April.The DSDP is expected to replace the crude oil for product swap programme, which its terms had earlier been pronounced to be corrupt. By extending the commencement date of the DSDP, NNPC has extended further the stop date for an interim crude for
product swap arrangement it set up after overhauling the former and putting it to last for only three months – from October to December 2015.In September 2015, NNPC announced its overhaul of the swap programme because it said it was corrupt, and then engaged three of its joint venture companies – Duke Oil, Carlson and Napoil – on interim basis to sustain nationwide supply and distribution of petroleum products.However, THISDAY gathered that the interim swap programme which was originally designed to run for only three months but has now gone on for six months is being kept by the corporation because of the lingering scarcity of petrol in the country.The corporation, in an official statement that was signed by its spokesman, Garba Deen Mohammed, at the weekend said it was carrying over the interim swap to the first week of April when the DSDP will commence.